What are permanent magnets made of?

Modern permanent magnets are made of special alloys found in research to produce ever better magnets. The most common permanent magnet materials today are aluminum-nickel-cobalt (alnicos), strontium-iron (ferrites, also called ceramics), neodymium-iron-boron (also called neodymium magnets or "super magnets"), and samarium-cobalt. (The samarium-cobalt and neodymium-iron-boron families are collectively called rare earths).